Hello all!! Some topical news broke at some point yesterday evening that there's going to be another effort to repeal and replace Obamacare. This blog entry is being written in a manner upon which I have limited information, so far, about the latest attempt from Congressional GOP members to remove it. I caught a headline on-line from a news service but didn't read the details of the article yet. The last time Obamacare was in the national headlines, in a big way, happened to be when the Supreme Court, in a most bizarre word parsing decision, upheld Obamacare as Constitutional by way of the Commerce Clause...even though the premise of the bill that became law had nothing to do with interstate commerce. Obama's lawyers framed the law as a "tax" and therefore it was Constitutional even though nowhere in the law does it say it's a tax increase.
In case you're new to this blog entry I encourage you to read the information located off to the right hand side underneath my photo. Although this is a blog page centered around the music, life, and career of Ray Stevens it's written from this fan's point of view and the information and opinions expressed shouldn't be interpreted as official representation of Ray, his family, friends, or his business associates.
Ray sang about Obamacare...he sang a lot about Obamacare and the Obama Administration between the years of 2009 and 2014. Now that we have Obama's Vice President running for President in 2020 I think it only fair to remind people why Biden will be wrong for the United States and how it would be an Obama third term. Front and center is Obamacare! If Biden gets in Obamacare will continue to get interwoven into the fabric of the medical community that it'll become even more complex to simply erase it's existence. If Biden gets in you can also say goodbye to America as we know it and I'm not exaggerating...I'm looking at what I see going on now.
"If You Like Your Plan" is one of several Obamacare songs from Ray Stevens. This particular song debuted in September 2014 on YouTube. The actual date was September 22, 2014 and as of this writing it's gotten 466,264 unique views. The song's title is based on a catchphrase attached to the Obama Administration when Obamacare was being drafted in the Congress. The song features vocal snippets and images of Obama at the beginning of the video touting that people had the choice of keeping their current healthcare plan and their family doctor and that Obamacare wouldn't play any role in shaping existing healthcare plans or premiums in the private sector...which were lies then and are lies still today.
Recalling the Obama/Biden-era of corruption is important because Joe Biden was
involved every step of the way. Think long and hard if you're seriously
thinking of voting for Biden in November...his vision for America is
just as destructive as both Obama and the radical Marxists who've been
taking to the streets for over a month. Let it sink in. Biden hasn't
spoken out against anything that's been taking place...he speaks out
against Trump, which he's obligated to do as an opponent, but he hasn't given any long form discussion about what
his Administration would look like nor has he been asked any questions that require decisive answers. Biden can't say certain things, publicly, for
fear of losing a segment of society that the Democrats are pandering to
this election cycle and so if pressed to answer tough questions (about police reform; racial issues; COVID-19; healthcare; the military) he'll more than likely not give a concise answer
and will likely dance around the question with a vague answer. Trump's opinions are perfectly clear and he defends his positions on a wide variety of issues...and he says how he feels. Contrast that to Biden...whose opinions and feelings aren't necessarily clear and he often doesn't state how he truly feels about anything except on rare moments when he reveals pieces of his true personality (which are quickly explained away by his staffers). His opinions are poll tested and so he says what a research consultant group thinks people want to hear. Trump is honest and speaks from the heart...you can visibly see it...while Biden is a charade and speaks words...and you can visibly see that, too.
Showing posts with label You Didn't Build That. Show all posts
Showing posts with label You Didn't Build That. Show all posts
June 26, 2020
May 9, 2020
Ray Stevens: His Political Comedy Videography...
Hello once more!! I frequent social media sites a lot and within the last several days I've been seeing a lot of video sharing of a certain Ray Stevens music video from 2012 called "Grandpa Voted Democrat". This is one of numerous political comedy videos released by Ray Stevens during what I refer to as his 'political phase' for lack of a better description. It started out of the blue in the final months of 2009 when a video single titled "We The People" hit YouTube and from there it took off like a rocket, as the saying goes. Ray found himself performing in a number of high profile political rallies and events throughout 2010...even appearing on several cable news television programs and talk radio programs.
He found himself back in Branson, Missouri performing a series of concerts at The Welk Theater on the strength of the political music videos. The concerts were broken in two halves in which the first half was a traditional concert filled with Ray's numerous serious and novelty recordings while the second half was strictly a political show where he performed a number of songs that gained their popularity through YouTube.
This videography lists the politically themed music videos, their release date, and unique view count rounded to the nearest hundred thousand or million depending on the level of unique views. In case you were wondering the letter 'K' stands for thousand and the letter 'M' stands for million. As an example: 2010's "Caribou Barbie", a music video about Sarah Palin, has received an estimated 648,000 unique views. 2014's "If You Like Your Plan" has received an estimated 454,000. I'm not posting exact numbers. I've highlighted in bold the music videos that have gotten more than a million unique views and italicized those with more than two million.
1. We The People; 12/11/2009 5.6 M
2. Caribou Barbie; 3/11/2010 648 K
3. Throw the Bums Out; 3/22/2010 1.3 M
4. Come to the U.S.A.; 5/13/2010 10 M
5. The Global Warming Song; 6/29/2010 1.2 M
6. God Save Arizona; 8/4/2010 1.1 M
7. Obama Budget Plan; 4/25/2011 5.2 M
8. Mr. President - Mr. President; 9/27/2011 3.5 M
9. Obama Nation; 7/23/2012 1.4 M
10. Grandpa Voted Democrat; 11/3/2012 2.2 M
11. If You Like Your Plan; 9/22/2014 454 K
12. Nero Fiddled; 10/10/2014 62 K
13. You Didn't Build That; 5/19/2015 401 K
As you can see by looking at the list of Ray Stevens YouTube political comedy music videos almost all of them have well over 100,000 unique views and several more have over 1,000,000. The only politically themed music video to not reach 100,000 or more is 2014's "Nero Fiddled". It's a moving and powerful music video. I'm sure some may have thought it too dramatic or heavy handed and that may have played a role in it's on-line performance...but it's hard to really tell because Ray emerged with "Dear America" a couple of years later. That recording wasn't politically based but it was just as powerful as "Nero Fiddled" and "God Save Arizona". "Dear America", by the way, sits with a little over 363,000 unique views as of this writing. It hit YouTube on September 6, 2016...a couple of months before the Presidential election of Donald Trump. I didn't include it in the list of political music videos because it's a patriotic song. A lot of people want to blend patriotism with their political beliefs but in my opinion those are two separate things.
Anyway, as you can see, I decided to embed "Nero Fiddled" in this blog entry. Ray appears with his back to the camera...and that may have been another reason this particular video clip didn't break loose like the others did.
Now, then, in a much more lighter mood...here's the video clip that's found new life on social media...2012's "Grandpa Voted Democrat"...
He found himself back in Branson, Missouri performing a series of concerts at The Welk Theater on the strength of the political music videos. The concerts were broken in two halves in which the first half was a traditional concert filled with Ray's numerous serious and novelty recordings while the second half was strictly a political show where he performed a number of songs that gained their popularity through YouTube.
This videography lists the politically themed music videos, their release date, and unique view count rounded to the nearest hundred thousand or million depending on the level of unique views. In case you were wondering the letter 'K' stands for thousand and the letter 'M' stands for million. As an example: 2010's "Caribou Barbie", a music video about Sarah Palin, has received an estimated 648,000 unique views. 2014's "If You Like Your Plan" has received an estimated 454,000. I'm not posting exact numbers. I've highlighted in bold the music videos that have gotten more than a million unique views and italicized those with more than two million.
1. We The People; 12/11/2009 5.6 M
2. Caribou Barbie; 3/11/2010 648 K
3. Throw the Bums Out; 3/22/2010 1.3 M
4. Come to the U.S.A.; 5/13/2010 10 M
5. The Global Warming Song; 6/29/2010 1.2 M
6. God Save Arizona; 8/4/2010 1.1 M
7. Obama Budget Plan; 4/25/2011 5.2 M
8. Mr. President - Mr. President; 9/27/2011 3.5 M
9. Obama Nation; 7/23/2012 1.4 M
10. Grandpa Voted Democrat; 11/3/2012 2.2 M
11. If You Like Your Plan; 9/22/2014 454 K
12. Nero Fiddled; 10/10/2014 62 K
13. You Didn't Build That; 5/19/2015 401 K
As you can see by looking at the list of Ray Stevens YouTube political comedy music videos almost all of them have well over 100,000 unique views and several more have over 1,000,000. The only politically themed music video to not reach 100,000 or more is 2014's "Nero Fiddled". It's a moving and powerful music video. I'm sure some may have thought it too dramatic or heavy handed and that may have played a role in it's on-line performance...but it's hard to really tell because Ray emerged with "Dear America" a couple of years later. That recording wasn't politically based but it was just as powerful as "Nero Fiddled" and "God Save Arizona". "Dear America", by the way, sits with a little over 363,000 unique views as of this writing. It hit YouTube on September 6, 2016...a couple of months before the Presidential election of Donald Trump. I didn't include it in the list of political music videos because it's a patriotic song. A lot of people want to blend patriotism with their political beliefs but in my opinion those are two separate things.
Anyway, as you can see, I decided to embed "Nero Fiddled" in this blog entry. Ray appears with his back to the camera...and that may have been another reason this particular video clip didn't break loose like the others did.
Now, then, in a much more lighter mood...here's the video clip that's found new life on social media...2012's "Grandpa Voted Democrat"...
February 9, 2020
Ray Stevens: Here We Go Again!...February Sale of the Month...
Hello one and all...for the month of February the Ray Stevens web-store is offering his 2015 CD, Here We Go Again!, at a discount price. If you frequent his on-line store you should be familiar with the month long discounts/deals placed on random items. This particular deal of the month is a discounted sales price for 2015's Here We Go Again!. If you search my archives that year you'll see that I wrote a lot of blog entries surrounding lead-up to the upcoming release, the release itself, and the music contained on the album I wrote in the form of a review. The main song that emerged from the CD was "Taylor Swift is Stalking Me" which appeared as a music video on YouTube prior to the release of the CD. That video eventually racked up millions of unique views throughout 2015 and the following years. Ray performed several songs from the CD on his CabaRay Nashville television program, including the one referring to Taylor Swift. On an episode of his television show that aired last night on a local PBS station he performed "Walkin' the Dog", a song from this 2015 CD. There are episodes of his show where he also performed "Pickin' on the Chicken", "Little By Little", and "There Must Be a Pill For This".
If you don't yet have a CD copy of this don't miss your chance at purchasing it for the discounted price. As you see on the video screen there is no shipping and handling fee. If you already have a digital Mp3 of this album why not get the CD counterpart. I love having CD copies because of the art work, the information, and sometimes you'll receive on a CD some sort of exclusive content by way of images or even liner notes that aren't reprinted a CD's product page in an on-line music store. This particular CD features a fold-out booklet containing the lyrics of every song, who wrote them, and the music publisher credits. There's also a message from Ray in the fold-out booklet. So while it might make sense to purchase music as Mp3's instead of purchasing a physical CD of music, chances are you're missing out on some of the perks of having an actual CD instead of just having digitally transmitted audio tracks from an on-line store to your on-line device.
If you don't yet have a CD copy of this don't miss your chance at purchasing it for the discounted price. As you see on the video screen there is no shipping and handling fee. If you already have a digital Mp3 of this album why not get the CD counterpart. I love having CD copies because of the art work, the information, and sometimes you'll receive on a CD some sort of exclusive content by way of images or even liner notes that aren't reprinted a CD's product page in an on-line music store. This particular CD features a fold-out booklet containing the lyrics of every song, who wrote them, and the music publisher credits. There's also a message from Ray in the fold-out booklet. So while it might make sense to purchase music as Mp3's instead of purchasing a physical CD of music, chances are you're missing out on some of the perks of having an actual CD instead of just having digitally transmitted audio tracks from an on-line store to your on-line device.
September 15, 2015
Ray Stevens: You Didn't Build That, Blog 3...
Hello one and all!! I'm assuming those that attended the previous concert from Ray Stevens at the Moon River Theatre (this past Saturday night) enjoyed the program...there hasn't been any feedback from those that attended...no comments, no pictures, no nothing...but I'm guessing that one of the songs performed is this one...his most recent video release, "You Didn't Build That". As mentioned in passing in the previous 2 installments spotlighting this video the title originated from a remark Obama made during one of his numerous speaking events...can't remember if he said it during a State of the Union address, a campaign speech, a campaign rally...or wherever...the point is the phrase generated inspiration enough to compose a song using the phrase. Ray, Buddy Kalb, and Chuck Redden are the credited songwriters. It's track 9 on the Here We Go Again! CD. The video hit YouTube on May 19, 2015...of course you're all encouraged to share this video among your on-line friends and share it on political sites if you hadn't done so already.
The upcoming 2016 election cycle and the various debates among candidates tend to dominate much of a cable news programs and the political blog sites...and it'll only get more and more dominant as the calendar flips over to 2016...but Obama's still the President...he's still in a highly powerful position to push his agenda through a largely inept Congress...but let this song remind you of the kind of policies and the kind of mentality that you don't want in the White House anymore or, for that matter, in Congress anymore...
Unique views for the video sit at 49,752...a month ago the count sat at 41,815. The fact that the video's gotten a 7,000 plus increase with hardly any mainstream media coverage is cause for some celebration. The actual pick-up in views is 7,937...so it's more closer to 8,000 additional discoveries since mid August. Let's see it break the 50,000 plateau sooner rather than later. If you are one that prefers the audio over the video you can click HERE and purchase the Mp3 of "You Didn't Build That" on Amazon.
The upcoming 2016 election cycle and the various debates among candidates tend to dominate much of a cable news programs and the political blog sites...and it'll only get more and more dominant as the calendar flips over to 2016...but Obama's still the President...he's still in a highly powerful position to push his agenda through a largely inept Congress...but let this song remind you of the kind of policies and the kind of mentality that you don't want in the White House anymore or, for that matter, in Congress anymore...
Unique views for the video sit at 49,752...a month ago the count sat at 41,815. The fact that the video's gotten a 7,000 plus increase with hardly any mainstream media coverage is cause for some celebration. The actual pick-up in views is 7,937...so it's more closer to 8,000 additional discoveries since mid August. Let's see it break the 50,000 plateau sooner rather than later. If you are one that prefers the audio over the video you can click HERE and purchase the Mp3 of "You Didn't Build That" on Amazon.
September 3, 2015
Ray Stevens: Video Singles...
There's been a pair of video singles tied to the current Ray Stevens CD, Here We Go Again. The first happened to be "Taylor Swift is Stalkin' Me" and the second, "You Didn't Build That".
The video's are extreme opposites of each other...the first one deals
with the delusions of a man believing Taylor is stalking him because he
sees her everywhere that he happens to be. Ray performed the song several times in the spring of 2015 during some of his appearances...one such being a guest appearance on the Grand Ole Opry...it happened to be the first time he performed it in concert. Those that had no idea who Ray Stevens happened to be didn't know what to make of the video.
A lot of those confused and at a loss being young kids and teenagers (primarily Taylor's fan base) that more or less had been alerted to the video due to it containing Taylor's name in the title. Some of the more humorless didn't care for the song's festive tempo and levity taking place at a fictional mental institution. It's gotten more than 300,000 views, regardless.
The second video single returned Ray to the political comedy field after an extended hiatus of new material for that genre of entertainment. Prior to the release of "You Didn't Build That" a couple of months ago his last political comedy video arrived a year ago this month in the form of "If You Like Your Plan" (September 22, 2014). It's been seen by more than 120,000 people. "You Didn't Build That" has been seen by close to 50,000 people so far.
I stress that this isn't the heat of a political season, yet, and even though Obama can't run for a third term he nevertheless is going to play a major part in the 2016 election cycle by virtue of his policies being attached to whichever Democrat gets the nomination. If it's Joe Biden expect to see a lot of issues that defined the Obama-Biden Administration to be fair game during the campaign trail in 2016.
Even though Ray's foray into political entertainment came as a surprise and a shock to most people late in 2009 nearly all of the political music videos from him that have appeared on YouTube feature a comical presentation to keep the mood lighthearted even though, if you listen carefully, the lyrics are pointed and actually, serious, but masked behind a comical presentation on video. "You Didn't Build That", his current video single, takes a phrase from one of Obama's speeches and it's turned into a song about Obama's twisted attitude about American business.
Not all of Ray's political videos have been visually comical, though. A couple are deeply serious. In the latter category there's "God Save Arizona" (August 4, 2010) and last year's "Nero Fiddled" (October 10, 2014). The 2010 video's focus happened to be the enormous problem of illegal immigration along the Arizona-Mexico border...more specifically the lawsuit that former Attorney General, Eric Holder, issued against the State of Arizona as a result of their enforcement of their immigration laws.
The 2014 video focuses in on Obama's consistent misplaced priorities and his lack of strong leadership in face of real threats...like the real threat of global terrorism. It's a strong message criticizing Obama's Presidency. "If You Like Your Plan" and "Nero Fiddled", at the moment, are available only as video singles on YouTube.
Share these among your on-line friends if you hadn't done so already... "You Didn't Build That", "Nero Fiddled", and "If You Like Your Plan"...
A lot of those confused and at a loss being young kids and teenagers (primarily Taylor's fan base) that more or less had been alerted to the video due to it containing Taylor's name in the title. Some of the more humorless didn't care for the song's festive tempo and levity taking place at a fictional mental institution. It's gotten more than 300,000 views, regardless.
The second video single returned Ray to the political comedy field after an extended hiatus of new material for that genre of entertainment. Prior to the release of "You Didn't Build That" a couple of months ago his last political comedy video arrived a year ago this month in the form of "If You Like Your Plan" (September 22, 2014). It's been seen by more than 120,000 people. "You Didn't Build That" has been seen by close to 50,000 people so far.
I stress that this isn't the heat of a political season, yet, and even though Obama can't run for a third term he nevertheless is going to play a major part in the 2016 election cycle by virtue of his policies being attached to whichever Democrat gets the nomination. If it's Joe Biden expect to see a lot of issues that defined the Obama-Biden Administration to be fair game during the campaign trail in 2016.
Even though Ray's foray into political entertainment came as a surprise and a shock to most people late in 2009 nearly all of the political music videos from him that have appeared on YouTube feature a comical presentation to keep the mood lighthearted even though, if you listen carefully, the lyrics are pointed and actually, serious, but masked behind a comical presentation on video. "You Didn't Build That", his current video single, takes a phrase from one of Obama's speeches and it's turned into a song about Obama's twisted attitude about American business.
Not all of Ray's political videos have been visually comical, though. A couple are deeply serious. In the latter category there's "God Save Arizona" (August 4, 2010) and last year's "Nero Fiddled" (October 10, 2014). The 2010 video's focus happened to be the enormous problem of illegal immigration along the Arizona-Mexico border...more specifically the lawsuit that former Attorney General, Eric Holder, issued against the State of Arizona as a result of their enforcement of their immigration laws.
The 2014 video focuses in on Obama's consistent misplaced priorities and his lack of strong leadership in face of real threats...like the real threat of global terrorism. It's a strong message criticizing Obama's Presidency. "If You Like Your Plan" and "Nero Fiddled", at the moment, are available only as video singles on YouTube.
Share these among your on-line friends if you hadn't done so already... "You Didn't Build That", "Nero Fiddled", and "If You Like Your Plan"...
August 5, 2015
Ray Stevens: You Didn't Build That, blog 2...
Hello once more...for those that hadn't purchased the Ray Stevens DVD titled Such a Night...50 Years of Hits and Hilarity (2012) it's on sale for the remainder of August. The sale ends on September 1st! Dropping in price from $24.95 to $12.50 and here's the LINK to view the product for yourselves.
In an update on the most current YouTube video by Ray Stevens, titled "You Didn't Build That", the numbers are 41,815. The song's about Obama's attitude toward American business and his Socialist ideals that nobody should claim anything they've earned for their own but rather share one's income, luxury, and fortunate circumstances freely and thank the Government, ultimately, for one's economical fortunes and opportunities. It's another serious, hard-hitting message but there's not been much, if any, publicity for it beyond the video sharing on-line. It's apparently become secondary given the busy schedule of concert travel, performances, and other activities...but let's also not forget that Obama's time as President is nearing entry into it's final year...and let's also not forget that Obama no doubt plans to speed up/accelerate whatever remaining goals he has in store for America's economy and society...and so don't be lulled into a sense of relief that 2016 is an election year and that he'll wind down and ease up on his socialistic agenda. If anything be prepared for hyper-activity and even more damage-inducing policies.
Don't forget that "You Didn't Build That" can be found on his current CD, Here We Go Again!, and that can be purchased HERE. At the moment there are 14 customer reviews on Amazon of the CD.
It must be a sign of the times but customer's nowadays don't seem to put much into their reviews anymore. My review (dated March 25) is lengthy and there's another review (dated March 24) that's expressive, too, but the remaining 12 are either one sentence or one word in length.
My guess is the reactions come from mobile devices...perhaps from customers used to the fast pace of character-limited social media chit-chatting and text messaging that it's become habit for super brief commentary no matter if there's not a character limit in place. It isn't just the reviews of Ray's music but it's across the internet landscape. Lengthy, descriptive, wordy commentary still exists but it hit me that it's becoming an endangered species (yes...it takes me at least 5 or maybe 10 years, maybe longer, to realize cultural changes have occurred). Here's the image of the current CD from Ray Stevens...
In an update on the most current YouTube video by Ray Stevens, titled "You Didn't Build That", the numbers are 41,815. The song's about Obama's attitude toward American business and his Socialist ideals that nobody should claim anything they've earned for their own but rather share one's income, luxury, and fortunate circumstances freely and thank the Government, ultimately, for one's economical fortunes and opportunities. It's another serious, hard-hitting message but there's not been much, if any, publicity for it beyond the video sharing on-line. It's apparently become secondary given the busy schedule of concert travel, performances, and other activities...but let's also not forget that Obama's time as President is nearing entry into it's final year...and let's also not forget that Obama no doubt plans to speed up/accelerate whatever remaining goals he has in store for America's economy and society...and so don't be lulled into a sense of relief that 2016 is an election year and that he'll wind down and ease up on his socialistic agenda. If anything be prepared for hyper-activity and even more damage-inducing policies.
Don't forget that "You Didn't Build That" can be found on his current CD, Here We Go Again!, and that can be purchased HERE. At the moment there are 14 customer reviews on Amazon of the CD.
It must be a sign of the times but customer's nowadays don't seem to put much into their reviews anymore. My review (dated March 25) is lengthy and there's another review (dated March 24) that's expressive, too, but the remaining 12 are either one sentence or one word in length.
My guess is the reactions come from mobile devices...perhaps from customers used to the fast pace of character-limited social media chit-chatting and text messaging that it's become habit for super brief commentary no matter if there's not a character limit in place. It isn't just the reviews of Ray's music but it's across the internet landscape. Lengthy, descriptive, wordy commentary still exists but it hit me that it's becoming an endangered species (yes...it takes me at least 5 or maybe 10 years, maybe longer, to realize cultural changes have occurred). Here's the image of the current CD from Ray Stevens...
June 29, 2015
Ray Stevens: You Didn't Build That...
Hello once more...and once again it's time to take a look at the results of the most recent YouTube offerings from Ray Stevens (specifically his previous series of music video releases).
Less than a year ago on September 24, 2014 Ray issued the music video "If You Like Your Plan". The song's title is based upon a catchphrase bandied around on campaign trails by Obama and those that support ObamaCare. The video offers a visual hook during the performance (obviously!) and so it's one of those songs that hold the distinction of debuting in video form prior to it's release as on CD/Mp3. To date that particular music video has received 104,932 unique views.
The simple truth is everyone that has healthcare has seen changes in their plans due to ObamaCare.
Beginning in January of this year my healthcare plan suddenly implemented a deductible. I'd had this plan for a number of years (through my employer) and had never, ever had to meet any kind of deductible until this year. Somebody somewhere decided my plan is part of a "high end medical plan" and therefore it requires a deductible now. I've not met that deductible and it's mathematically impossible to meet it during a 12 month calendar period.
It's no surprise that since 2009 Ray's become much more visible as a music video artist...and his YouTube channel is home to a variety of video clips of current, previous, and classic productions including clips from his 1970 summer television program!!
A video that's been lost amidst the other releases is "Nero Fiddled". It's a strong social commentary ballad that perhaps is a bit too strong for some to digest but it's nonetheless a gripping performance. It hit YouTube a little more than a month after "If You Like Your Plan".
Nero emerged on October 10, 2014 and so far it's gotten 38,836 unique views. One of the unusual aspects of the video is Ray appearing with his back to the camera at various moments throughout the video. At the beginning of the video he's seen playing the fiddle in suit and tie (presumably as Obama) and at various moments there's footage of Ray in ancient Rome attire (back to the camera) as Nero.The idea of Ray appearing with his back to the camera is apparently a reference to the idea of Nero/Obama turning their back to tragedy...
Shifting from political but still remaining in the topical category is Ray's previous music video...the novelty song titled "Taylor Swift is Stalking Me". This video's gotten more than 200,000 unique views since it's debut on February 24th. The most recent total as of this writing is 242,157. The song was Ray's first release off of his current CD, Here We Go Again!.
Ray's current video hit, "You Didn't Build That", is the second release from his current CD. This particular video hasn't reached it's full potential yet...sitting at the moment with 32,765 unique views. It's only been available on YouTube since May 19th and given the lack of a major political story in the national headlines (at the moment) the video hasn't gotten that boost that I feel it'll receive at some point. Unlike audio recordings that need boosts from radio airplay to reach a mass audience an on-line music video needs a boost from video sharing on social media outlets to reach a mass audience. If there's coverage on television or through talk radio (for politically driven songs) then that's an added bonus...but by and large on-line music videos live and die through social media and video sharing.
The song centers around Obama's social belief that human beings owe the Government their time, respect, and worship for all that the Government provides "to the people". Those that build roads, bridges, buildings, etc. should be thankful to the Government because if not for the Government "the people" couldn't get loans, tax breaks, assistance, or anything else. In the mindset of Obama a person doesn't do anything on their own and the Federal and State Government is the glue that holds a society together.
I just explained socialism in less than a paragraph...and Ray Stevens further demonstrates the socialism that exists under the surface in Obama's policies. I recommend all of you that are reading this to share this video with your friends if you hadn't done so already...
Less than a year ago on September 24, 2014 Ray issued the music video "If You Like Your Plan". The song's title is based upon a catchphrase bandied around on campaign trails by Obama and those that support ObamaCare. The video offers a visual hook during the performance (obviously!) and so it's one of those songs that hold the distinction of debuting in video form prior to it's release as on CD/Mp3. To date that particular music video has received 104,932 unique views.
The simple truth is everyone that has healthcare has seen changes in their plans due to ObamaCare.
Beginning in January of this year my healthcare plan suddenly implemented a deductible. I'd had this plan for a number of years (through my employer) and had never, ever had to meet any kind of deductible until this year. Somebody somewhere decided my plan is part of a "high end medical plan" and therefore it requires a deductible now. I've not met that deductible and it's mathematically impossible to meet it during a 12 month calendar period.
It's no surprise that since 2009 Ray's become much more visible as a music video artist...and his YouTube channel is home to a variety of video clips of current, previous, and classic productions including clips from his 1970 summer television program!!
A video that's been lost amidst the other releases is "Nero Fiddled". It's a strong social commentary ballad that perhaps is a bit too strong for some to digest but it's nonetheless a gripping performance. It hit YouTube a little more than a month after "If You Like Your Plan".
Nero emerged on October 10, 2014 and so far it's gotten 38,836 unique views. One of the unusual aspects of the video is Ray appearing with his back to the camera at various moments throughout the video. At the beginning of the video he's seen playing the fiddle in suit and tie (presumably as Obama) and at various moments there's footage of Ray in ancient Rome attire (back to the camera) as Nero.The idea of Ray appearing with his back to the camera is apparently a reference to the idea of Nero/Obama turning their back to tragedy...
Shifting from political but still remaining in the topical category is Ray's previous music video...the novelty song titled "Taylor Swift is Stalking Me". This video's gotten more than 200,000 unique views since it's debut on February 24th. The most recent total as of this writing is 242,157. The song was Ray's first release off of his current CD, Here We Go Again!.
Ray's current video hit, "You Didn't Build That", is the second release from his current CD. This particular video hasn't reached it's full potential yet...sitting at the moment with 32,765 unique views. It's only been available on YouTube since May 19th and given the lack of a major political story in the national headlines (at the moment) the video hasn't gotten that boost that I feel it'll receive at some point. Unlike audio recordings that need boosts from radio airplay to reach a mass audience an on-line music video needs a boost from video sharing on social media outlets to reach a mass audience. If there's coverage on television or through talk radio (for politically driven songs) then that's an added bonus...but by and large on-line music videos live and die through social media and video sharing.
The song centers around Obama's social belief that human beings owe the Government their time, respect, and worship for all that the Government provides "to the people". Those that build roads, bridges, buildings, etc. should be thankful to the Government because if not for the Government "the people" couldn't get loans, tax breaks, assistance, or anything else. In the mindset of Obama a person doesn't do anything on their own and the Federal and State Government is the glue that holds a society together.
I just explained socialism in less than a paragraph...and Ray Stevens further demonstrates the socialism that exists under the surface in Obama's policies. I recommend all of you that are reading this to share this video with your friends if you hadn't done so already...
June 12, 2015
Ray Stevens: Here We Go Again! Tour...
It's me again all you fans of Ray Stevens!! I've been on one of my hiatuses but this one had nothing to do with the lack of activity in the career of Ray Stevens but instead my absence can be traced to personal reasons dealing with a health ailment of my father that, at the moment, seems to be on the brink of correcting itself but he hasn't had an "all clear" notice from any of his doctor's yet. He suffered an aortic dissection and ever since it happened (April 29th) I hadn't been keeping complete attention on much of anything for the last month and a half. I hadn't had the time and on the rare moments that I've had the time I've been too tired to put together a blog entry.
Several things have happened during my hiatus. One of the things that happened is Ray Stevens released a new YouTube music video, "You Didn't Build That". It's gotten a little more than 28,000 unique views since it's debut a couple of weeks back. It's a song from his current CD, Here We Go Again!. The song, the moment I heard it for the first time, cried out "turn me into a music video!!", and I'm happy to see that he's made a music video of it. It's a social commentary message about Obama...and here's the video...
This is the follow-up to "Taylor Swift is Stalking Me". That particular video's gotten more than 200,000 unique views so far...and I hope the current music video makes a run into that category, too, and rake in hundreds of thousands of views.
As of this writing Ray should be getting ready to end his concert in Franklin, North Carolina if it hasn't ended by now. It's 9:25pm as of this moment. His concert for tonight at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts was set to get underway around 7:30pm. According to a Facebook post the concert happened to be a sell out. This concert date is the first of many in a tour that Ray's titled Here We Go Again!...named for his current comedy CD. In one of Ray's Facebook posts it makes mention of the fact that there should be additional concert appearances added in as they're confirmed but at the moment these are the current concert dates for Ray Stevens in 2015...
June 13 – Gulfport, Miss. – Island View Casino
Aug 1 – Hiawassee, Ga. – Anderson Music Hall
Sept 12 – Branson, Mo. – Andy Williams Theatre
Sept 19 – North Myrtle Beach, S.C. – The Alabama Theatre
Oct 2 – Bowling Green, Ky. – SKyPAC / Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center
Oct 3 – Pigeon Forge, Tenn. – Country Tonite Theatre (2 shows)
Nov 21 – Deadwood, S.D. – Deadwood Mountain Grand Event Center
As you can see there's a lot of gaps between appearances and so I'm thinking additional concert dates are going to start popping up.
I highlighted in bold print the next concert appearance...tomorrow night in Gulfport, Mississippi. Those reading this may want to check out that venue and, of course, check out all of the other venues if you're interested in attending any of the concerts. Ray hasn't done a lot of concert dates in the last several years and one of the things I often come across on message boards and in comment sections of music videos is people asking if he's going to be in concert anytime.
For those that routinely ask if Ray's planning on doing any concert dates I'd strongly advise you, if you live in the region of these concert appearances, to think about attending them. The concerts announced so many months in advance it gives fans the chance to plan ahead. Ray doesn't tour often and so it would be a terrible decision if you were to shrug off these concert appearances for something next year...there's no guarantee he'll do any touring next year...so don't miss out!
Here are some links promoting Ray's upcoming tour and appearances...
TOUR
GEORGIA AUGUST 1st
Ray is returning to Branson, Missouri this coming September. An advertisement (using music video clips from 1992) is on YouTube...call the number displayed on the screen for tickets...
If you prefer seeing a conventional form of advertisement then click this link and it'll take you to a promo page for Ray's concert on September 12th in Branson. The tickets are on sale now...
RAY STEVENS IN BRANSON 2015...
Several things have happened during my hiatus. One of the things that happened is Ray Stevens released a new YouTube music video, "You Didn't Build That". It's gotten a little more than 28,000 unique views since it's debut a couple of weeks back. It's a song from his current CD, Here We Go Again!. The song, the moment I heard it for the first time, cried out "turn me into a music video!!", and I'm happy to see that he's made a music video of it. It's a social commentary message about Obama...and here's the video...
This is the follow-up to "Taylor Swift is Stalking Me". That particular video's gotten more than 200,000 unique views so far...and I hope the current music video makes a run into that category, too, and rake in hundreds of thousands of views.
As of this writing Ray should be getting ready to end his concert in Franklin, North Carolina if it hasn't ended by now. It's 9:25pm as of this moment. His concert for tonight at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts was set to get underway around 7:30pm. According to a Facebook post the concert happened to be a sell out. This concert date is the first of many in a tour that Ray's titled Here We Go Again!...named for his current comedy CD. In one of Ray's Facebook posts it makes mention of the fact that there should be additional concert appearances added in as they're confirmed but at the moment these are the current concert dates for Ray Stevens in 2015...
June 13 – Gulfport, Miss. – Island View Casino
Aug 1 – Hiawassee, Ga. – Anderson Music Hall
Sept 12 – Branson, Mo. – Andy Williams Theatre
Sept 19 – North Myrtle Beach, S.C. – The Alabama Theatre
Oct 2 – Bowling Green, Ky. – SKyPAC / Southern Kentucky Performing Arts Center
Oct 3 – Pigeon Forge, Tenn. – Country Tonite Theatre (2 shows)
Nov 21 – Deadwood, S.D. – Deadwood Mountain Grand Event Center
As you can see there's a lot of gaps between appearances and so I'm thinking additional concert dates are going to start popping up.
I highlighted in bold print the next concert appearance...tomorrow night in Gulfport, Mississippi. Those reading this may want to check out that venue and, of course, check out all of the other venues if you're interested in attending any of the concerts. Ray hasn't done a lot of concert dates in the last several years and one of the things I often come across on message boards and in comment sections of music videos is people asking if he's going to be in concert anytime.
For those that routinely ask if Ray's planning on doing any concert dates I'd strongly advise you, if you live in the region of these concert appearances, to think about attending them. The concerts announced so many months in advance it gives fans the chance to plan ahead. Ray doesn't tour often and so it would be a terrible decision if you were to shrug off these concert appearances for something next year...there's no guarantee he'll do any touring next year...so don't miss out!
Here are some links promoting Ray's upcoming tour and appearances...
TOUR
GEORGIA AUGUST 1st
Ray is returning to Branson, Missouri this coming September. An advertisement (using music video clips from 1992) is on YouTube...call the number displayed on the screen for tickets...
If you prefer seeing a conventional form of advertisement then click this link and it'll take you to a promo page for Ray's concert on September 12th in Branson. The tickets are on sale now...
RAY STEVENS IN BRANSON 2015...
March 5, 2015
Ray Stevens: Here We Go Again audio samples...
Hello to all the fans of Ray Stevens...a surprising video upload emerged on YouTube yesterday. I provided a link to the upload in my previous blog but today I'm going to embed the video. It's an audio sample of the 12 songs that appear on Ray's upcoming CD, Here We Go Again!. Ray uploaded this yesterday as a promo of the upcoming CD...featuring snippets of each recording. I listened to the audio samples...and you're all going to love them, I'm sure.
Isn't that great?? I can't wait to hear the songs in their entirety. Yes, you heard it for yourselves...that's Ray Stevens covering the Ray Charles classic "What'd I Say?"...and I can not wait to hear "You Didn't Build That" in it's entirety. "There Must Be a Pill for This", based on the audio, sounds like pure satire for all that cures ya.
I came across a short and to the point reaction on a certain social media site yesterday, though, from an obvious hater of novelty songs. I'm not going to highlight or quote the offending remarks but let's just say the comment is rude and callous.
There's also several trolls on YouTube that get a thrill out of insulting Ray's music, his fans, and his political beliefs. That's the reason I prefer embedding his videos rather than leaving a link. You can, of course, view an embedded video from right here on the blog page and therefore bypass any offending comments left by trolls and race-baiting creeps on the actual YouTube page.
I'll continue to be on alert for that kind of commentary and I'll pass it on to you all. My advice is for people to rate a troll's comments with a thumbs down...never give a troll a reaction, though, in comment form. Starting an argument and being disruptive is exactly the desire of a troll. So, like I mentioned, simply thumb down a negative comment on YouTube. Once the comment gathers enough negative response it's removed from the page.
Ray's video about Taylor Swift has risen to 54,698 unique views by the way. The numbers for Ray's music video have been experiencing some freezing over the last couple of hours. Usually this means that a video is getting an overwhelming amount of plays and it's difficult for YouTube to catch up and so there's a freeze put in place...even though unique views are still being counted. Once the freeze is lifted the updated unique view total is posted underneath the video. Yesterday Ray's video was stuck at 52,489 for most of the day. During the duration of my typing up this blog entry the video's stayed at 54,698...and so it might be frozen again.
As far as the CD is concerned Amazon has the upcoming CD listed as being available now on March 23rd instead of March 24th. This may be a typo because the Mp3 is still showing March 24th as release day. Perhaps the label wants CD orders to be shipped ahead of time and so the release date for CD's have been moved ahead one day? I'd prefer Amazon ship CD orders several days ahead of release day so those that purchased a CD can receive their product in the mail a day or so before or after it's officially released later this month. If the CD's release date reverts back to March 24th at some point today then it's all been a glitch in the system.
Isn't that great?? I can't wait to hear the songs in their entirety. Yes, you heard it for yourselves...that's Ray Stevens covering the Ray Charles classic "What'd I Say?"...and I can not wait to hear "You Didn't Build That" in it's entirety. "There Must Be a Pill for This", based on the audio, sounds like pure satire for all that cures ya.
I came across a short and to the point reaction on a certain social media site yesterday, though, from an obvious hater of novelty songs. I'm not going to highlight or quote the offending remarks but let's just say the comment is rude and callous.
There's also several trolls on YouTube that get a thrill out of insulting Ray's music, his fans, and his political beliefs. That's the reason I prefer embedding his videos rather than leaving a link. You can, of course, view an embedded video from right here on the blog page and therefore bypass any offending comments left by trolls and race-baiting creeps on the actual YouTube page.
I'll continue to be on alert for that kind of commentary and I'll pass it on to you all. My advice is for people to rate a troll's comments with a thumbs down...never give a troll a reaction, though, in comment form. Starting an argument and being disruptive is exactly the desire of a troll. So, like I mentioned, simply thumb down a negative comment on YouTube. Once the comment gathers enough negative response it's removed from the page.
Ray's video about Taylor Swift has risen to 54,698 unique views by the way. The numbers for Ray's music video have been experiencing some freezing over the last couple of hours. Usually this means that a video is getting an overwhelming amount of plays and it's difficult for YouTube to catch up and so there's a freeze put in place...even though unique views are still being counted. Once the freeze is lifted the updated unique view total is posted underneath the video. Yesterday Ray's video was stuck at 52,489 for most of the day. During the duration of my typing up this blog entry the video's stayed at 54,698...and so it might be frozen again.
As far as the CD is concerned Amazon has the upcoming CD listed as being available now on March 23rd instead of March 24th. This may be a typo because the Mp3 is still showing March 24th as release day. Perhaps the label wants CD orders to be shipped ahead of time and so the release date for CD's have been moved ahead one day? I'd prefer Amazon ship CD orders several days ahead of release day so those that purchased a CD can receive their product in the mail a day or so before or after it's officially released later this month. If the CD's release date reverts back to March 24th at some point today then it's all been a glitch in the system.
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